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Complying With The FTC Funeral Rule – Complete Guide
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Complying With The FTC Funeral Rule – Complete Guide
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Complying With The FTC Funeral Rule – CompleteGuide
What is the purpose of the Funeral Rule? Right Ans - The Funeral Rule
requires you to give consumers accurate, itemized price information and
various other disclosures about funeral goods and services.
What does the Funeral Rule prohibit you from doing? Right Ans - 1.
misrepresenting legal, crematory, and cemetery requirements
2. embalming for a fee without permission
3. requiring the purchase of a casket for direct cremation
4. requiring consumers to buy certain funeral goods or services as a condition
for furnishing other funeral goods or services
5. engaging in other deceptive or unfair practices.
What is the penalty for violating the Funeral Rule? Right Ans - If you violate
the Funeral Rule, you may be subject to penalties of up to $41,484 per
violation.
Who must comply with the Funeral Rule? Right Ans - All "funeral
providers" must comply with the Rule. You are a funeral provider if you sell or
offer to sell BOTH funeral goods and funeral services to the public.
What are "funeral goods"? Right Ans - Funeral goods are all products sold
directly to the public in connection with funeral services.
What are "funeral services"? Right Ans - Funeral services are services used
to care for and prepare bodies for burial, cremation, or other final disposition;
and services used to arrange, supervise, or conduct the funeral ceremony or
final disposition of human remains.
Do you need to be licensed as a FDR or FD to be covered by the Funeral Rule?
Right Ans - You do NOT have to be a licensed funeral director and your
business does not have to be a licensed funeral home to be covered by the
Funeral Rule. Cemeteries, crematories, and other businesses can also be
"funeral providers" if they market both funeral goods and services.
,Does the Funeral Rule apply to pre-need arrangements? Right Ans - YES! In
pre-need situations, you must comply with all Rule requirements at the time
funeral arrangements are pre-planned. You also need to comply with the Rule
after the death of the individual who made pre-need arrangements. If the
survivors inquire about goods or services, alter the pre-planned
arrangements, or are required to pay additional sums of money, you must give
them all relevant disclosures and price lists.
If you are an agent of the funeral provider, are you covered by the Rule? EX:
selling pre-need contracts or third-party removal company Right Ans - YES
When did the Funeral Rule go into effect? Right Ans - April 30th, 1984
What must the GPL contain? Right Ans - It must contain identifying
information, itemized prices for the various goods and services that you sell,
and other important disclosures. The GPL enables consumers to comparison
shop and to purchase, on an itemized basis, only the goods and services they
want.
Who gets a GPL? Right Ans - You must give the General Price List to anyone
who asks, in person, about funeral goods, funeral services, or the prices of
such goods or services. You must give the GPL to such individuals to keep. The
request for information does not have to come from a consumer or someone
who wants to make funeral arrangements now or in the future. You must give
a GPL to all persons who inquire about funeral arrangements. This may
include competitors, journalists, and representatives of businesses, religious
societies, government agencies, or consumer groups.
When should the GPL be offered? Right Ans - You must offer the price list
when you begin to discuss any of the following:
1. The type of funeral or disposition that you can arrange
2. The specific goods and services that you offer
3. The prices of your goods and services
*Before giving a GPL to a bereaved individual, you may offer your condolences
and discuss preliminary matters like veteran's benefits or death certificates*
What is the triggering event for handing out the GPL? Right Ans - The
triggering event for giving out the GPL is a face-to-face meeting. The face-to-
, face meeting can occur anywhere, not just at the funeral home. For example,
you must give out a General Price List even if the discussion of prices or
arrangements takes place in the family's home or while removing the
deceased from a hospital or a nursing home. You should tell your employees
to carry extra price lists with them.
Does the Rule apply to Phone or Mail inquiries? Right Ans - You must give
certain information to people who telephone, but the Rule does not require
you to send callers a General Price List. Similarly, you do not have to send a
GPL in response to mail inquiries about funeral goods and services. Of course,
you certainly are free to send a GPL to someone who calls or writes for
information if you wish to do so. However, if a telephone or mail inquiry is
followed up by a meeting at the funeral home or elsewhere, you must provide
a GPL at that time.
*Some states require funeral providers to mail a price list upon request. You
should check to see what the requirements are in your state*
Does the Rule Require the GPL Be Given to Keep? Right Ans - You must
physically offer consumers a General Price List that they can keep and take
home with them. If the consumer does not want to accept or look at the
General Price List, you do not have to do anything else. However, you should
do nothing to discourage customers from looking at the GPL, such as telling
them that it is unnecessary or difficult to understand.
Is a verbal offer of a GPL satisfy the Rule? Right Ans - NO! You cannot
merely tell consumers that a GPL is available for inspection.
Can you display your GPL in a booklet or binder? Right Ans - NO! This
implies that there is only one copy available or that the booklet is solely for
the funeral director's use. You must physically offer consumers a General
Price List that they can keep and take home with them.
Can you charge a fee or place a condition on disclosure of information
supplied in your GPL? Right Ans - NO! You cannot charge a fee for the price
list or place any conditions upon giving consumers information that the Rule
requires you to give to them. You must give ALL required information to
ANYONE who asks, free of charge.
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